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View synonyms for

fossil

[ fos-uhl ]

noun

  1. any remains, impression, or trace of a living thing of a former geologic age, as a skeleton, footprint, etc.
  2. a markedly outdated or old-fashioned person or thing.
  3. a linguistic form that is archaic except in certain restricted contexts, as nonce in for the nonce, or that follows a rule or pattern that is no longer productive, as the sentence So be it.


adjective

  1. of the nature of a fossil:

    fossil insects.

  2. belonging to a past epoch or discarded system; antiquated:

    a fossil approach to economics.

fossil

/ ˈɒə /

noun

    1. a relic, remnant, or representation of an organism that existed in a past geological age, or of the activity of such an organism, occurring in the form of mineralized bones, shells, etc, as casts, impressions, and moulds, and as frozen perfectly preserved organisms
    2. ( as modifier )

      fossil insects

  1. informal.
    1. a person, idea, thing, etc, that is outdated or incapable of change
    2. ( as modifier )

      fossil politicians

  2. linguistics a form once current but now appearing only in one or two special contexts, as for example stead , which is found now only in instead ( of ) and in phrases like in his stead
  3. obsolete.
    any rock or mineral dug out of the earth
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

fossil

  1. The remains or imprint of an organism from a previous geologic time. A fossil can consist of the preserved tissues of an organism, as when encased in amber, ice, or pitch, or more commonly of the hardened relic of such tissues, as when organic matter is replaced by dissolved minerals. Hardened fossils are often found in layers of sedimentary rock and along the beds of rivers that flow through them.
  2. See also index fossil

fossil

  1. The evidence in rock of the presence of a plant or an animal from an earlier geological period. Fossils are formed when minerals in groundwater replace materials in bones and tissue, creating a replica in stone of the original organism or of their tracks. The study of fossils is the domain of paleontology . The oldest fossils (of bacteria ) are 3.8 billion years old.
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Notes

The term is used figuratively to refer to a person with very old-fashioned or outmoded viewpoints: “That old fossil thinks that men should wear suits at the theater!”
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Other Word Forms

  • ڴDzs· adjective
  • ܲ·ڴDzs noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of fossil1

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin fossilis “dug up,” from foss(us) “dug” (past participle of fodere “to dig”) + -ilis -ile ( def ); replacing earlier fossile, from French
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Word History and Origins

Origin of fossil1

C17: from Latin fossilis dug up, from fodere to dig
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

“The motivations are clearly to privilege fossil fuel interests over the interests of the public. This report is entirely in the public interest, and they’re just trying to bury the facts.”

From

Sir Tony Blair has called for a major rethink of net zero policies, arguing that limiting energy consumption and fossil fuel production is "doomed to fail".

From

Renewable power has different challenges to fossil fuel energy "because of its intermittency", she said, but it is a well-known issue that is planned for.

From

One of his first moves as PM, before the election, was to repeal Trudeau's unpopular carbon pricing programme, which was designed to give financial incentives for people and firms to turn away from fossil fuels.

From

A budding palaeontologist has dug up fossils in his garden dating back 140 million years.

From

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fossickfossil energy